Remap is a national charity that works through local groups of skilled volunteers to provide tailor-made equipment solutions that help people carry out essential daily tasks as well as other activities that would otherwise be impossible.
Remap help disabled people achieve independence and a better quality of life by designing and making equipment for their individual needs.
Able Magazine recently partnered with Remap, and were delighted to support a new category at the annual Remap Awards, this year held in London in June, to celebrate the achievements of their many dedicated volunteers.
The awards were presented by Invictus Champion, Paralympian – and engineer, Dave Henson, who said: “I am blown away by the ingenuity of Remap’s engineers. They are coming up with some really unique, creative solutions which have a massive impact on people’s lives.”
Winners
Remap’s talented makers, inventors and engineers submitted a strong field of applications for the prestigious awards. A diverse spectrum of winners included projects such as a VR headset and zoom camera that enable a registered blind person to see, a wheelchair adapted specifically for an expedition to Mount Snowdon, a device to help an amputee use a rollator, a handle designed for a paraplegic person to get into his adapted car, a handrail fitted to the door of a listed building and an adapted chair for use on a narrowboat.
The inaugural Able Magazine Award was scooped by Ralph Anderson who designed a custom-sized step unit allowing a young girl living with skeletal dysplasia (dwarfi sm) to reach the standard height bathroom washbasin and taps in her home. The upper step is large enough to provide a safe standing platform with the side panels reducing the risk of a fall from height. The step surfaces have an eggshell finish with fine grit included to provide a non-slip surface.
Her parents had tried various steps but, because of the normal stepping distance and the overall height required, they were very diffi cult for Margaux to use and consequently lacked sufficient stability, meaning that a bespoke solution was required. The unit now gives Margaux the same independence as other children.
Many congratulations to the winning projects, which represent some ingenious solutions to problems faced by individual disabled people from across the country. Incredibly, all of the solutions provided by Remap were given away free of charge to their new owners. Remap’s hard-working team of volunteers help about 10 people every day, enabling people in their communities to stay independent, regain lost skills and discover new ones.
